Deep
by lookingforthestars
Summary: What if Waige didn't reunite at the wedding? Walter sees Paige a year later and realizes some things don't change.


**I have ideas for two multi-chapter stories, but I keep copping out to do one-shots instead. They're coming soon! I hope! But please enjoy this in the meantime. It's sappy, but I'm in a sappy mood.**

 **I'm more or less caught up on reviews so thank you to all our tireless writers for getting us through the hiatus. I finally finished reading the amazing "Another Time, Another Place" by DarlingJenny and it blew me away. Her writing is perfect, or at least better than mine. Even if you don't typically read AUs, check it out. I can't recommend it enough.**

She was blue.

That was a stupid thought. Paige wasn't actually blue. It was a combination of the water and the lights and the reflection off the glass, dancing over her skin and giving her an almost otherworldly glow.

Walter shook his head. He was the same color, as were the couple in the corner, and the woman with blonde hair rocking a baby to sleep. And Ralph, chattering excitedly to his mother as he described the mutation on a striped black and white fish swimming past them. There was nothing inherently noteworthy about it.

And yet…he'd forgotten. What she looked like. Of course, his eidetic memory ensured that he had memorized her features, not that the more than three hundred nights he fell asleep thinking about her wouldn't have accomplished that anyway. But she was never that beautiful in his head. Not like she was in person.

They were oblivious to him. If he backed out quietly, left the aquarium and got into his Malibu and drove away, there would be no problems. No awkwardness. No chance of seeing loathing or indifference in Paige's expression.

If he didn't lose control over his faculties whenever she was around, he could leave now.

"Walter!" Ralph noticed him first, a happy smile forming on his face. Paige's eyes whipped to his and she stiffened, the shuddering breath she released apparent from a hundred feet away. She would have to pass him to reach the exit, unless she wanted to traverse the entire length of the aquarium again. Walter could stop her if she stormed out, a repeat performance of that fateful night in the garage, but he didn't know if that was a good idea, or even if he would have the courage to try.

But then she softened, lingering in her spot a second longer before she followed her son, who was barreling toward Walter at full speed.

"Hey, kiddo." The genius didn't need to crouch down anymore—Ralph was nearly level with his ribcage. They were tracking his height on a wall in the garage when he visited, once a month even though he came over more than that. Walter never understood the point when Sean and Louise had measured his own growth with a pencil and a pocketknife. Everyone got taller; it wasn't an achievement worthy of commemoration. Until Ralph. With Ralph, everything was worth remembering.

The boy grinned as Walter ruffled his hair. "What are you doing here?"

He dropped his hand and shrugged. "It's Saturday and there were no cases so I…" Walter's voice faltered as Paige caught up with them, placing her hands on Ralph's shoulders as she came to a stop behind him. He swallowed and forced his attention back toward the young genius. "Um, I used to come here sometimes. With Megan."

"Sylvester told me she liked the otters."

The memory flashed in his mind, too briefly for him to capture, of Megan laughing in delight as an otter bolted playfully from one edge of his tank to the other, as if he was putting on a show just for her. Walter cleared his throat. "Yes. She did."

"Cool." He glanced up and over his shoulder at his mom. "I'm gonna go see the kid's area, okay?"

Paige furrowed her brow. "You hate the kid's area."

But Ralph was already wiggling out of her grasp and striding purposefully toward the tunnel exit. "You can't go in there, so take your time!" he yelled back. Paige just watched him, dumbfounded, until he disappeared around the faux volcanic rock doorframe.

"He hates the kid's area," she repeated, finally bringing her gaze to Walter. "He said it was insulting to any child over the age of two."

"M-Maybe he can give a lecture," Walter said, only half-joking. The air around them suddenly felt unbearably cold and the genius wondered if he was sweating. "I-I think, he just, uh, wanted…" Walter gestured vaguely between them.

Paige nodded, sliding her arms to cross in front of her body. A quiet laugh escaped her lips. "He always was sneaky that way."

"Yeah. I think he learned it from Toby." Walter felt the knot in his chest untangle a little more as the corner of her mouth quirked up. The tension between them was so thick he was sure it would qualify as solid matter, but she wasn't making an excuse to run. And as much as he wanted to walk away—or open the tank and find a shark to swallow him whole—being in her orbit again was like being in a trap. Walter knew he wouldn't be the first one to leave. "H-How…how have you been?"

Her eyes widened, as if she was surprised by the inquiry, and she shuffled, glancing down at her feet. "Good," she murmured. Her voice was the same. Another stupid thought—the human voice stabilized in early adulthood, of course hers hadn't changed, but it was like hearing a familiar song that he could never quite recall the melody of. "Elia's great. He's given me more perks than I can use. It's…it's a little embarrassing, actually. I think he has an overinflated opinion of my value to the company."

"I d-doubt that," Walter answered immediately. _There's no one else like you. Trust me, I know._ A red flush crept into her cheeks and the genius wondered if he was simply adding to her embarrassment. "I'm glad. I knew Elia would give you…everything that you deserve."

He already knew the details of Paige's job. The office, the personal assistant, the raises. Requesting updates from Elia seemed too invasive after the first time; he didn't want to be a stalker. So now it was mostly Ralph or Cabe who gave him the news, never waiting for him to ask, knowing that even after all this time he couldn't admit how concerned he was that she was happy.

It was for the best. Elia could offer her the money and stability and opportunities he couldn't, no matter how much he'd wanted to. She and Ralph were taken care of. There was nothing more important to him than that. But there were days, still, when a client frustrated him, when the garage was empty at night and there was a stack of paperwork to fill out, when he'd smell that unmistakable lavender scent on Ralph's shirt from Paige hugging him goodbye, and everything would rush back so fast it made his head spin and his stomach churn.

He forgave her about space soon after he fired her. Too soon. He'd been hoping he could hold on to that anger and mistrust longer, validate his decision somehow. But it vanished with her, and now things were good for her, and if he really loved her, he wouldn't ask her to leave it behind. Hold her back. Drag her into the chaos.

"How's the team?" Walter was almost startled by the question, realizing how long he'd been standing with her in virtual silence. He didn't know how to answer. She kept in touch with the rest of Scorpion, and they picked up Ralph from her apartment when she was busy with work. Occasionally, she would drop him off herself, rarely stepping foot in the garage. It took a few tense phone conversations to work out a semi-consistent schedule, but Walter didn't push his luck. He'd given Paige enough reason to pull them both out of his life forever.

"Everything is…running smoothly." He didn't mention that the other geniuses hated the new liaison he hired, or that she lasted all of three weeks before leaving one night and never returning. He didn't tell her that he'd cycled through four different contacts at the CDC, either, or that there hadn't been a vegetable in the kitchen in well over six months. It was possible she already knew. "Did Happy tell you?"

"That she's pregnant?" Paige bit her lip, emotion flashing in her eyes. "Yeah. I'm really happy for her."

"Toby keeps lecturing her to take it easy, which is probably causing her more stress than anything else."

She giggled. "Probably." Walter could see something else in her eyes, just for a second, as she tucked her hair behind her ear. He couldn't name it, but it looked how he felt and god, he hoped Paige didn't have the same hole he did. That was the last thing he wanted for her. "I miss them," she said quietly, fixing her stare firmly on a patch of artificial coral behind the glass. "I talk to them when I can, but it's not the same."

"I-It's not…" He sucked in a breath, unsure if it was wise to say what he was thinking. "It's not the same without you. Either."

Paige didn't answer, didn't even look at him at first. It only took a month for him to recognize the truth of that statement, and he thought maybe the next time he saw Paige the words might find their way through his fumbling. But Happy and Toby's decision to elope meant no wedding, no reason for Paige to come back, no more chances. And then it was another day, another week, another month, and calling her to apologize became as feasible in his mind as calling Albert Einstein to discuss relativity.

She'd tried to move on. Ralph told him. There were dates, but never more than one with the same person. That gave him hope, even though he knew it shouldn't. Because nothing had changed. The feelings surging through him were just as fresh as they'd been the day he remembered space, like the last year never happened, like he'd just been dancing with her in the garage a week earlier. Walter suspected that even if he hadn't seen Paige in five years, ten, fifteen, it wouldn't matter. He would still love her.

She sniffed, the heel of her hand coming up to rub at her eyes. "I never thought things would end up like this. I always thought…" She shook her head, tears welling up faster than she could control them. "I can't believe it's been so long."

"I-It's my fault." Walter had never liked seeing Paige cry and he frantically wondered what he could say that would give her any kind of comfort when he was the cause of her strained relationship with the team. "I handled things poorly and I…I couldn't process it, I tried to make a logical decision b-but it was wrong and…." He realized he was rambling when he had to pause for air, but he couldn't stop. "A-And I wanted to fix it. But I didn't know how. I-I'm sorry. I wish that I could—."

"Walter, just shut up for a second," she said thickly, her arms bending around his neck before the genius could catch up to what was happening. The warmth of her body pressed against his nearly overwhelmed him, after a year without her touch, but his need for her was greater and his hands found her lower back to pull her closer. He'd forgotten he was capable of feeling this much, of wanting this much. It hurt. "I'm sorry too. I could have…reached out. Talked to you. But it was so hard."

"I-I know." Walter squeezed his eyes shut, vaguely aware that there were other visitors around but unwilling to separate himself from Paige despite his views on public affection. He thought he might physically fall apart if he let go. "It would be n-naïve to think we could go back to the way things were, but can we…"

"We'll figure it out," she whispered, rubbing one hand over his shoulder before she stepped back, drying the remaining dampness on her cheeks. "I've really missed you, Walter."

Walter didn't think there was a word in any of the languages he spoke to describe how painfully he missed her. He'd been such an idiot to push her away because of his memories. If she hadn't loved him, even if she never loved him and her friendship was all he could hope to attain, that was infinitely better than a life without her. "M-Me too."

"Ralph and I are going to dinner. Do you want to join us?" He hesitated, not from doubt but from the sudden intensity of how much he wanted what she was offering. Paige reached out, squeezing his hand, and Walter wondered if she could feel his pulse, which seemed to be pounding inside his palm. "I don't want things to be like this anymore, Walter. Come with us."

There were a thousand apologizes and questions on his tongue. But he swallowed them. To be with both of them tonight, to have Paige back in his life, was more than he'd ever expected to have again. It was much more than enough.

Walter nodded, tightening his grip on her hand. "Okay."


End file.
